Books & Culture

A collage of three people and lines of writing.
Life and Letters

A Friend Died, Her Novel Unfinished. Could I Realize Her Vision?

Attempting to complete a beloved colleague’s work meant trying to see with her eyes and reckoning anew with her absence.

The Latest

The Intimate Reality of the J.F.K. Assassination

Black and white photograph of President John F. Kennedy's motorcade in Dallas, Texas prior to his assassination.

A visit to Dealey Plaza, after years of thinking and reading about the Kennedy assassination, came as a shock.

1:57 P.M.

The Best Books We’ve Read in 2023 So Far

Our editors and critics review notable new fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.

11:00 A.M.

A Cartoonist’s Thanksgiving

A cartoonist crouches under a desk with a drawing of Trump.

The Don stays in the picture (alas).

November 21, 2023

A Hidden Stash of Extraordinary Self-Portraits

A woman with her eyes closed.

A début monograph by Carla Williams lets the world in on a quietly thrilling collection of images that have been tucked away for nearly four decades.

November 21, 2023

Frederick Wiseman Reveals the Mighty Substance of Culinary Luxury

A group of chefs gathered around a table.

The nonagenarian’s new film, “Menus-Plaisirs—Les Troisgros,” examines the social and aesthetic context of a world-famous three-star restaurant.

November 21, 2023
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The Critics

The Morality of Having Kids in a Burning, Drowning World

A silhouette of a mother holding her child, made from an iceberg.

Two recent books, “The Quickening” and “The Parenthood Dilemma,” consider the ethics of procreation in the age of man-made climate change.

Betye Saar Reassembles the Lives of Black Women

A black-and-white self-portrait of Lezley Saar, from 1978. Photograph by Lezley Saar / Courtesy the artist / Roberts Projects.

The artist restores depth and interiority to the caricatures of racism.

On “Higher,” Chris Stapleton Makes His Case for Love

Portrait of Chris Stapleton playing the guitar.

The country star’s new album is concerned almost exclusively with affairs of the heart—but his gritty, determined voice never sounds sentimental.

The Search for Faith, in Three Plays

A man and woman facing each other at a bar.

In “Danny and the Deep Blue Sea,” “Scene Partners,” and “Waiting for Godot,” characters seeking redemption skirt the fringes of belief and delusion.

Goings On

Shifting Sympathies in “Spain”

A photograph of Marin Ireland and Andrew Burnap, by Todd Midler for The New Yorker

Also: The films of Jo Van Fleet, a Philip Glass dance showcase, an LCD Soundsystem tour, and more.

The Lasting Pleasures of New Haven Pizza

A photograph of two pizzas on a table, taken at Modern Apizza. Photograph by Cole Wilson for The New Yorker.

The city’s restaurants inspire pilgrimages and intense loyalties. Can their magic be replicated elsewhere?

Celebrating the Holidays in N.Y.C.

A group of winter-themed people and objects.

Favorite traditions light up the season, including “The Nutcracker,” Handel, a Yo La Tengo residency, and more.

The Splendid Notebooks of Picasso

A sketch of a face by Picasso.

Also: “The Curse,” Bob Dylan, Spike Lee, and more.

Photo Booth

A woman with her eyes closed.
Photo Booth

A Hidden Stash of Extraordinary Self-Portraits

A début monograph by Carla Williams lets the world in on a quietly thrilling collection of images that have been tucked away for nearly four decades.

More Photo Booth
Podcasts

A Rise in Antisemitism; and a Conversation with the A.I. Pioneer Geoffrey Hinton

Black lines wrapping around the Star of David.

The normalization of antisemitism has the potential to destabilize democracies, a historian says. Plus, the godfather of artificial intelligence on why his brainchild scares him.

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